Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Singapore
Singapore: Share of urban population who live in the largest city was 84.8% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Singapore, 1950–2020
Source: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2020, share of urban population who live in the largest city in Singapore stood at 84.8%.
That represents a change of down 1.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of urban population who live in the largest city in Singapore peaked at 89.3% in 1980 and was at its lowest, 77.0%, in 1950.
Singapore ranks 3rd of 179 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.
Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Singapore, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 77.0% | — |
| 1955 | 78.9% | +2.5% |
| 1960 | 83.5% | +5.9% |
| 1965 | 85.8% | +2.7% |
| 1970 | 85.8% | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 88.5% | +3.1% |
| 1980 | 89.3% | +1.0% |
| 1985 | 89.1% | -0.3% |
| 1990 | 88.6% | -0.5% |
| 1995 | 88.3% | -0.3% |
| 2000 | 87.8% | -0.7% |
| 2005 | 87.1% | -0.8% |
| 2010 | 86.5% | -0.7% |
| 2015 | 85.7% | -0.9% |
| 2020 | 84.8% | -1.0% |
Singapore compared with similar countries
- Singapore's 84.8% is above the median for high income countries, which is 29.2%, 2.9× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Singapore's 84.8% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 28.2%, 3.0× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 77.9% | 77.0% | 78.9% | 2 |
| 1960s | 84.7% | 83.5% | 85.8% | 2 |
| 1970s | 87.2% | 85.8% | 88.5% | 2 |
| 1980s | 89.2% | 89.1% | 89.3% | 2 |
| 1990s | 88.5% | 88.3% | 88.6% | 2 |
| 2000s | 87.4% | 87.1% | 87.8% | 2 |
| 2010s | 86.1% | 85.7% | 86.5% | 2 |
| 2020s | 84.8% | 84.8% | 84.8% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Singapore
More population data for Singapore
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate -0.0914 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate -0.9668 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate -100 % change on previous year (2028)
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate -0.9668 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population growth rate, by level of development -0.9% (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 140,350 people (2100)
- Population density 5,798 people per km² (2100)
- World population growth -0.9% (2100)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.5703 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population 0.4648 Percent per annum (2030)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of urban population who live in the largest city in Singapore?
- Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Singapore was 84.8% in 2020, according to European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of urban population who live in the largest city recorded in Singapore?
- The highest recorded value was 89.3% in 1980.
- What is the lowest share of urban population who live in the largest city recorded in Singapore?
- The lowest recorded value was 77.0% in 1950.
- How does Singapore rank for share of urban population who live in the largest city?
- Singapore ranks 3rd out of 179 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of urban population who live in the largest city rising or falling in Singapore?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Singapore data come from?
- The figures come from European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of urban population who live in the largest city. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Percentage of the urban population living in the country's largest city (by population). City boundaries are defined using a consistent global approach based on satellite imagery and population data.